legal question re copyright of real estate images
Aug 13, 2013 06:51:18 #
I think that your realtor friend has a written agreement with the MLS company that more than likely covers this subject.
She submitted the photos for publication and I am sure there is a contractual agreement on both sides as to the use of the photos.
She submitted the photos for publication and I am sure there is a contractual agreement on both sides as to the use of the photos.
Aug 13, 2013 06:54:58 #
My wife is a Realtor(R) and her MLS also does that and that is actually to protect your photos, so that if another Realtor(R) or whoever may pickup the listing in the future they cannot use your photos, but must take their own.
Aug 13, 2013 07:07:25 #
RiverNan wrote:
this is kinda weird...a friend of mine is selling ... (show quote)
Nan, as you say, if your intent was to HELP your friend... first and foremost... then drop the ball on this one. You provided the best help... GOAL ACHIEVED. Take what happened on the TREND end of the situation as a lesson LEARNED and move on. The lawyer fees and mental distress won't make you a happy person should you make a mountain out of this mole hill... IMHO.
Aug 13, 2013 07:51:30 #
RiverNan wrote:
this is kinda weird...a friend of mine is selling her home and asked me to take some pictures for her so of course I did. I went on line to see if she was using them and of course she was...
Very tricky situation, since there are two people and a business involved. You took the pictures, so you originally owned them. The tricky part is what rights you gave to your friend. Did you know they were going to be used to sell the house? Did you know they would be put online? Trend is trying to protect the pictures on it's site. The seller said, "Here are pictures of my house," and they used them to advertise it.
It's a situation of "What did you know, and when did you know it?" If it were me, I'd be flattered to see them used online. Of course, now you have to wonder if Trend would come after you if you try to use your own photos.
Aug 13, 2013 08:24:53 #
Well .. interiors can be a Grey area .
Although as the Photographer you have the Copyright om the image But
The Person that Designed that Room has Copyright on the Design .
Although as the Photographer you have the Copyright om the image But
The Person that Designed that Room has Copyright on the Design .
Aug 13, 2013 09:53:02 #
RiverNan wrote:
this is kinda weird...a friend of mine is selling ... (show quote)
Nan, what's the name of the realtor? I think I would give them a call and ask them if that's their 'brand'?
Aug 13, 2013 10:19:34 #
CaptainC wrote:
Copyright is federal law - you cannot go to small claims court.
Actually, you can go to small claims court. You can go there for anything. However, the amount you can win is the limiting factor. Here in San Diego our small claims courts can provide judgments up to $10,000, and they can enforce city, county, state, or federal law.
Aug 13, 2013 10:26:53 #
Nan...Just wondering...When your friend asked you to take pictures of her house, did she not indicate that it was for sales purposes? Obviously when she chose a realtor she gave them your photos. Because your photos are better than what the normal realtor takes, you may help her in the sale of her home. In this case, I would wish your friend the best of luck in the sale of her home. She should, in fact, buy you a nice gift when it sells.
Aug 13, 2013 11:33:17 #
You took very nice pictures but if you do this in the future, always put the toilet seat down.
Aug 13, 2013 11:52:56 #
Good friends have far greater value than photos of real estate. Keep the friend and forget the photos. If the friend needs more photos, shoot them and give them to him/her.
If you are trying to make money, put together a portfolio on an iPad and call on agents. Be prepared to buy lunch as it is about the only way you can get attention long enough to get anything done.
Not every agent will be a prospect. Only the top 20% will make enough money themselves to pay for good photography. Many don't even list properties. They only sell. Some specialize in getting listings and rarely sell. Most "listers" loose interest in a property as soon as they get the listing contract. They will shoot a few snaps in bad light themselves for the MLS. Then they wait until someone else finds the buyer.
Yes, I made my living as a salesman. No, not real estate.
If you are trying to make money, put together a portfolio on an iPad and call on agents. Be prepared to buy lunch as it is about the only way you can get attention long enough to get anything done.
Not every agent will be a prospect. Only the top 20% will make enough money themselves to pay for good photography. Many don't even list properties. They only sell. Some specialize in getting listings and rarely sell. Most "listers" loose interest in a property as soon as they get the listing contract. They will shoot a few snaps in bad light themselves for the MLS. Then they wait until someone else finds the buyer.
Yes, I made my living as a salesman. No, not real estate.
Aug 13, 2013 12:06:21 #
bsprague wrote:
Not every agent will be a prospect. Only the top 20% will make enough money themselves to pay for good photography. Many don't even list properties. They only sell. Some specialize in getting listings and rarely sell. Most "listers" loose interest in a property as soon as they get the listing contract. They will shoot a few snaps in bad light themselves for the MLS. Then they wait until someone else finds the buyer.
I know it's different in different areas, but in all the states where I have worked in real estate, the listing agent/selling agent are the same. The exception mostly is when the listing agent is the owner or has other vested interest in the property. At that point many brokerages require that there be a selling agent to keep the listing agent/owner at arm's length from the transaction.
When I was a Realtor, the first thing I learned was "List to last." I'm still in real estate (45+ years now), but not as a Realtor. However, my husband is a Realtor, and I think "list to last" is still so very much true. He has had so many buyers flake out, but once a property is under a listing contract, it's rare for the seller to flake out. If he does his marketing job well and prices the property appropriately, it sells.
Aug 13, 2013 12:13:34 #
This might be of some help with your question reference TREND. Seems it's a consortium of MLS agents.
https://www.trendmls.com/Default.aspx
https://www.trendmls.com/Default.aspx
Aug 13, 2013 12:22:27 #
jthomas wrote:
You took very nice pictures but if you do this in the future, always put the toilet seat down.
:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: good advice
hey its all good...I gave the pictures freely...I knew she would use them to sell her house...
I just wanted to know if someone else TREND held copyright to my images...I think I now know....
thanks everyone.
Aug 13, 2013 12:48:58 #
RiverNan wrote:
this is kinda weird...a friend of mine is selling ... (show quote)
It sounds like you took the images for your friend to help her sell her house. If so what are you complaining about. You took the pictures to help her sell her house and that is exactly what she is using them for. She's not printing them and putting them in frames and selling them is she? She's not using them as art, is she? No, she's simply using the as she said she would - to show the property in MLS to aid in the sale of her property. End of story. Maybe you should have watermarked your images if you wanted recognition.
Aug 13, 2013 13:07:41 #
You did a favor for a friend, the pictures are being used for her intended purpose. It isn't like the pictures are going to be peddled all over the world. As soon as the house is sold they go to file 13. Your pictures weren't stolen, they are being used as intendedÂ…find something else to get your panties in a knot over.
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